Gene Taylor, of Bay St. Louis, is one of only a handful of Members of Congress with hands-on experience in the United States Coast Guard. Serving in the Coast Guard Reserve from 1971-1984 as the skipper of a search and rescue boat, he received the Commandant’s Letter of Commendation for fire fighting and a letter of Commendation for saving the life of a crewmember.

Prior to his election to Congress in 1989, he served as a member of the Bay St. Louis City Council and the Mississippi State Senate. In the U.S. House of Representatives, Taylor serves on two major committees, the House Armed Services Committee and the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

As a member of the Armed Services Committee, he is the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Projection Forces. He also sits on the Readiness Subcommittee. On the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee he serves on the Water Resources and Environment and the Highways and Transit Subcommittees.

In addition, Taylor serves as co-chair of the following four Congressional member organizations:  Shipbuilding Caucus, National Guard and Reserve Caucus, Coast Guard Caucus, and Expeditionary Warfare Caucus. He is also a member of the Conservative Democrats' Blue Dog Coalition.

Taylor and his wife, the former Margaret Gordon of Bay St. Louis, have three children, Sarah, Emily, and Gary.  After losing their Bay St. Louis home to Hurricane Katrina, the Taylors currently reside in Kiln, Mississippi, with family.